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The internet is debating iced coffee at job interviews

Is Gen Z losing out on work because it loves caffeine too much?

• less than 3 min read

TOPICS: Culture / Cultural Commentary / Generational Cultural Trends

A job recruiter on TikTok set off an internet firestorm this week with a one-minute video. Her warning to Gen Z: Stop bringing iced coffee to interviews, as it’s perceived as disrespectful to the potential employers.

Caitlin Wehniainen, who works mostly with Fortune 500 companies, said that’s her feedback for Gen Z job hunters who have the audacity to arrive for interviews with iced latte in hand—the very thing you may be drinking right now. People who accepted the ragebait can be boiled down into two groups:

  • On one side, there’s people who call the move unprofessional. One concern was condensation. Another was swirling the cup.
  • On the other side are people who can’t believe this is A Thing. “It is such a non-issue,” one person told Business Insider.

In statistical-based Gen Z job news: The influx of AI has been particularly tough on young people. A study from the Stanford Digital Economy Lab found that employment among workers aged 22–25 in highly AI-exposed jobs is ~19% below where it is in less-exposed occupations.—DL

About the author

Dave Lozo

Morning Brew

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